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Sometimes There Are No Words

Sometimes there are no words. Sometimes you stare at your screen or notebook, and they refuse to come. Your mind is a wasteland of ideas. Only lonely letters and half formed syllables whisper across on the wind, picking up dust as they go. I admit, the words aren't coming to me right now. I have stories, blog posts to work on but...I stare at the blinking cursor and wonder what I'm doing wrong. Life is tiring me out right now; maybe that's the cause. I am dry, parched. I think I burned too hard, too fast, and now my inferno has become the slightest flicker.

I am empty. Maybe you feel this way now too, or have in the past. You feel hollowed out; you know something is missing inside you, but you can't figure out what. My problem is I throw everything into a project, task, or story. I do it to my absolute best, as quickly as I can. But when you keep saying "yes" to all the offers people make you, or tasks they ask you to do... It can be very, very overwhelming. And when I think I can just keep pushing through until I get to the end of my responsibilities, I freeze. My words freeze. I spend so much time focusing on what I have to do, that I neglect what I need to do. Expressing myself creatively falls in the need section, life and other responsibilities in the have todo section. That's not to say that I hate everything that I have to do. But when my mind is full to the brim with to-do lists and deadlines, my burning desire to create stays the same, but my mind has no room to think outside of lists. So where am I going with this? You are not alone. You're not alone. You're not alone if you have periods when you feel like you can't write, when your thoughts are consumed by a tornado of to-dos and have-tos. We all go through phases of burn-outs. It's, to be honest, natural. It would be impossible to keep going and going and going and going without a rest, wouldn't it? At times we need to stop. We might feel dry as the Sahara Desert, but consider this stopping time an opportunity to recharge yourself. Among the busyness spend time with family, with friends, doing things that relax you THAT ARE NOT WRITING. I cannot stress that enough.

You can take a break.

I don't expect you to operate at one hundred percent all the time. So don't expect yourself to. Your creative muse needs holidays, time to soak in the world around it and experience life. After all, you can't write if you don't have any means to gather inspiration, right? The words don't have to come straight away. Smash out that to-do list as much as you can, then come back to your creations and ease back into it. Maybe do a little drawing, or some singing. Read a few books. Slowly submerge yourself back into the world of creativity, and there, waiting for you, will be your words. They won't leave you forever.

Are words coming to you right now? Have you ever gone through burn-out phases? What do you do to get out of them? How busy are you at the moment? (I apologize for my half-coherent post. I'm a bit of a busy mess, really.)

Aww thank you so much Lila! That means so much. <3 I'm glad it felt coherent; sometimes I don't know if what I write is actually any good or just a jumble of words. :) Best of luck with your struggle, whatever it is. <3 Thanks so much for commenting!

This is so true !! I have been writing less since school started and maybe it's the pressure or frustration. I do think I burned out from writing so much this summer and I was actually planning on writing a blog post on the feeling, but you summed up my feelings perfectly <3

As always, I love how honest your posts are! I think some author said, "If you're a writer, the words will come back to you."

Thanks Andrea! :) That's a great quote! I'm sure they will come back; sometimes it's the waiting game that is the most frustrating part.

Yes, sometimes writing too much can cause burn-out, when mixed with lots of schoolwork. Make sure to rest up, okay? <3 Feel free to write a blog post about this; I'd love to read it! Thanks so much for commenting, and I hope your words come back to you soon!

Wow <333, Me right now honestly! *raises hand* Especially when the writing includes school and you are obligated to write, it feels like you are cheating yourself to not give your best but sometimes we need a short break. Like relaxing to read a book and doing it early next morning.

It's tough but we can do this right? This was such an encouraging and helpful post Melissa <3333 as always...you remind me that sometimes we just need to speak from our hearts. Bravo xox

Thank you Anna! <333 I'm sorry you're feeling the same way, but we can definitely do this!!! We will be strong, and rest up together. The words will come back to us, when they can. Reading a book sounds like a marvelous idea. <3

This post is lovely! And definitely something I need as I come out of a period of time without creativity. Sometimes we need to recharge. Sometimes we need a break. We need to tell ourselves it's okay to take that break. We can always come back when we're ready. So thank you for this reminder! I hope your words come back when it's time!

Thanks Sarah! I'm happy it can be a reminder to you. :) Breaks are vital, because if we don't take them we'll just keep draining ourselves. We don't have to go go go all the time. Thank you so much for commenting!

I've been having the EXACT same problem. I've been starting to throw myself into grad school, restarting my geneological adventures and started to volunteer at the site that I worked at over the summer. I feel that I want to draft Eirwen's story (I still haven't gotten a new title for it yet) but I just can't form the words!!!

So, thank you for this encouragement!! I hope to maybe at least do some synopsis/title drafting this weekend.

Goodness, you sound busy as well! I'm sorry you're in the same boat (not the best place to be), but we can pull through this together. Take a break for now, and then tackle that writing! Don't push yourself. <3 Thanks so much for commenting and good luck with your writing, Catherine! :)

Awww, Liss *grapples you in hug* I LOVE YOU. I am amazed at how productive you've been this year. Like ... WOW. This post was me for most of the summer :P I'm just now getting out of this dry, empty phase and writing again. I did need a bit of a break, but I didn't let myself take one till August. And even then, it kind of happened without my permission :P I LOVE YOU SO MUCH AND I'M HERE IF YOU NEED TO TALK, KAY? Rest up, dear. Save the words for Nano ;)

Nawwwww I love you too Liz! <3333 *accepts hug after a minute of grumbling about how you're suffocating me* I suppose I have been sort of productive... XD Aww well I'm happy you're getting back into it now! (Plus it means I get to read your stuff.) I LOVE YOU TOO AND YES I SHALL TALK IF I NEED TO, AND YOU CAN TELL ME STUFF TOO, OKAY? I will save those words. :D Thanks so much for commenting, love!

Rests are certainly needed! I admire people who can write a little bit every day, but I need breaks when I don't write or I burn out. XD Sometimes I feel bad when I have to take a break, but it's very refreshing in the end.